


Mr Wells' Time Machine

by Small_Hobbit



Category: Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle, Spooks | MI-5
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-30
Updated: 2014-10-30
Packaged: 2018-02-23 07:03:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2538671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Small_Hobbit/pseuds/Small_Hobbit
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lucas North, thinking he is dismantling a bomb, finds himself in the same room as Mrs Godfrey Norton (née Irene Adler)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mr Wells' Time Machine

**Author's Note:**

> My thanks to scfrankles for her sterling beta work.

Lucas North had good reason to be feeling confused. Less than five minutes earlier he had been trying to disable a bomb in a conference room of a posh London hotel. Now, following a certain amount of swooshing and bright lights, he and the bomb were in what was apparently the same hotel room, (judging from the view out of the window), but the furniture was completely different. The room looked more like a drawing room and, on top of everything, he was no longer alone.

There was a lady seated in one of the chairs and looking as surprised as Lucas imagined he did himself. She was extremely elegant and wearing what Lucas thought had to be an Edwardian dress. He found himself staring at her, but then averted his gaze, feeling that such behaviour would not be acceptable in her company; especially when he suspected that he’d somehow forced his way into the room.

The lady straightened her dress slightly and smiled at Lucas. “Well,” she said, “this is a surprise. You’re not who I was expecting.”

“Er, no, sorry,” Lucas mumbled, feeling himself starting to blush. Then he remembered what he had been doing. “You must leave at once. It’s not safe for you to stay here.”

“Why ever not?”

“This is a bomb. And I need to dismantle it before it explodes.”

The lady laughed. “It’s not a bomb. It’s Mr Wells’ time machine, which you seem to have accidentally activated, when you tried to dismantle it.”

She stood up to take a closer look at the time machine. She was a stunning woman, probably ten years older than Lucas, and he couldn’t keep his eyes off her.

“Can I get you some tea, Mr ...?” she asked.

She waited patiently while he gathered his wits together sufficiently to answer her. “North, Lucas North.”

“My name is Mrs Godfrey Norton, Irene Norton.” She put a hand on Lucas’ arm. “It’s alright, my husband is out at the moment. But it would probably be a good idea to get you back where you came from. And besides which, without his machine Mr Wells will be unable to return here, which will be rather frustrating for him. So once I’ve poured us some tea I will find his instructions and we can reset the machine.”

Irene poured the tea and passed a china cup and saucer to Lucas. She then opened the drawer of a bureau and rummaged around a bit, before giving a triumphant “Aha!” She unfolded a large sheet of paper, which was covered in intricate drawings, and placed it next to the machine. She then began to compare the two.

Lucas went over to look as well. “Can I help?” he asked.

“Yes, but don’t touch anything for the moment. I need to work out the correct order to reset the machine. I don’t suppose you can remember exactly what you did?”

Lucas thought briefly and then said, “Yes I can. I began by moving this lever.”

“I said ‘Don’t touch it!’” Irene repeated.

Lucas jumped backwards, startled at her vehemence.

Irene leaned forward, took his hand and led him round to the drawings. “You can point to what you did on here.”

Lucas carefully went through what his actions had been as he had begun to dismantle what he believed to be a bomb. Irene nodded and occasionally made thoughtful noises, stopping him a couple of times to make sure she knew exactly what he’d done.

Finally she said “Good. I know what I need to do to reset it.”

She went back to the bureau and took out some intricate tools, which looked to Lucas as if they should have belonged to a watchmaker. He was surprised at their size, but as he watched Irene work he began to appreciate the delicate nature of the adjustments. Eventually Irene declared herself satisfied.

She smiled at Lucas and said, “Right, it’s all ready. Stay there and I’ll be back in a few minutes. Do not touch anything while I’m gone.”

Lucas sat down to wait for her. When she returned she was wearing a dark green dress and matching jacket and carrying a hat.

“I’ll just write a note for my husband and then I’ll be with you,” Irene said.

Lucas looked puzzled.

“I’m coming with you,” she said. “I’ve always wanted to try out Mr Wells’ machine for myself and this is the perfect opportunity.”

“Are you sure you will be safe?”

“My dear boy, I have done all number of things in my lifetime, many of which I imagine you would not consider safe. A quick trip with a time machine is not going to cause me any harm.”

Irene showed Lucas which parts of the machine he needed to activate, explaining the order he would need to follow. She stood behind him and put her hands on his waist.

“Now!” she said.

Once again there was a swoosh and some bright lights and Lucas saw that they were back in the conference room. The elaborate furnishings had been replaced by utilitarian desks and chairs, although the view from the window had remained the same.

“Excellent!” Irene said. “Now to find Mr Wells.”

She kissed Lucas on the cheek and departed. He was still staring after her when Ros Myers came in.

“It’s okay, we’ve found the bomb and dealt with it,” Ros said. She looked at the machine that Lucas was standing next to. “Whatever is that?”

“No idea. Maybe it’s a time machine!”

“Yeah, very funny. And who were you talking to just before I arrived? I thought this area had been cleared.”

Lucas smiled. “Do you mean the woman?”

 

 


End file.
